Children often learn best when they don’t even realise they are learning. So, if you’re a rugby coach hoping to inspire and train the next generation of rugby talent, it’s essential that you make your sessions fun.
Nobody wants to be a boring coach, and there are lots of fun games you can incorporate into your rugby training drills to ensure you get the most from your players in each and every session. Here are just a couple to get you started.
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Escape with the egg
This fun game will help your younger players learn how to avoid being tackled while still running in the right direction. Set up the game within a 15m square, with seven attackers, each with their own ball – the ‘egg’ – inside a smaller 7m square in the centre and five defenders surrounding them.
Defenders have to run around a cone on the outer edge of the larger square before trying to tackle an attacker. The aim of the game is for the attackers to break out of the square before being tackled by a defender. Once they are all out – having either scored or been touch tackled by a defender – the attackers then need to try to get back into the centre square again.
Hot potato
This twist on a classic is ideal for getting players used to holding, passing and running with a ball. Players are allowed to run with the ball, but must do a two-handed pass within two seconds. If the ball is dropped, not passed within two seconds, or is touch-tackled by the other team, possession passes to the other side.
Place a time limit on the game. The winning team is the one that makes the most successful passes in that time-frame.
There are many more fun games which help to develop all of the skills required to play rugby. Try incorporating these into your own rugby training drills. For other ideas, explore rugby training drills and other resources dedicated to this growing sport. More information about the game can be found on the Rugby Football Union website.
Remember, keeping it fun is the key to success with younger players. Incorporating games into your training drills is a sure-fire way to develop early skills that are so essential to becoming a good player.
